Core knowledge

An executive summary is the one page investors read before they decide to read anything else. How to write one in plain words, three worked examples, a before-and-after rewrite and a free Word template.

A down round means raising money at a lower price per share than your last round. What it does to founders, employees and the option pool, how anti-dilution works, how to avoid one and a free calculator.

Nine data rooms compared for the two jobs founders face: a fundraise, where a light room with tracked links is enough, and a sale, where buyers expect a full virtual data room. Published prices, key features and how to choose.

Selling a company takes seven steps and most of a year. The sell-side M&A process in plain English: each step, a realistic timeline, who does what, the documents buyers see and what kills deals.

14 legal tech venture capital firms that did a deal or raised a fund in 2025 or 2026: specialist funds, publishers' venture arms and the generalists behind legal AI, with stated cheque sizes and recent rounds. Plus legal tech funding data and what these investors check first.

A startup board deck is the set of slides your board reads before each meeting. What goes on each slide, how it differs from an investor update and a pitch deck, how to run the meeting around decisions, and a free PowerPoint template.

A liquidation preference decides who gets paid first when your startup is sold. How 1x, participating and 2x preferences work, what seniority does, worked examples at five sale prices and what's normal in 2026.

A cap table shows who owns your startup and who has been promised a piece. Get a free Excel template that runs from founding to Series A, with a SAFE and the option pool, and the maths explained in plain English.

A startup budget is your month-by-month plan for what you'll earn and spend. What goes in one, the costs founders forget, budget vs actuals, and a free 12-month Excel template where every output is a formula.

Ten presentation design agencies compared: who each one suits, where it's based, what it publishes about price and turnaround, and how to pick one for a keynote, a sales deck or an investor deck.

A startup term sheet sets the price and the rules of your funding round before the lawyers draft anything. Every clause explained in plain English, what's normal in 2026, worked examples and a free template.

The best business valuation service depends on what the number is for. 15 verified providers across 4 kinds: online calculators, certified appraisers (ASA, CVA, ABV explained), 409A specialists and advisory firms, with published prices and a decision framework.

How M&A advisors get paid in 2026: retainers, success fees by deal size, minimum fees and tails, the Lehman formula worked at $5M, $20M and $100M, and when a success fee beats a retainer. From Waveup, 50+ M&A transactions supported.

Sourced 2026 exit multiples by industry: EV/EBITDA, revenue and ARR ranges for SaaS, e-commerce, fintech, healthcare, services, manufacturing and more, with the deal-size context behind each number and a step-by-step way to price a business for sale.

The best M&A advisor for a startup depends on deal size, not brand. 10 verified firms grouped by bracket, the Big 4's real role in M&A, published fee models, red flags, and a decision framework for boutique vs bank vs broker.

A decision guide for founders asking whether to sell their startup in 2026: when selling beats growing, the 5 exit paths, who buys and what each pays for, the sell-side process step by step, deal structure, and the 6 mistakes that kill sales.

How much equity founders give up per round in 2026: Carta's median dilution by stage, a 4-round worked cap table, why SAFE stacks and option pools dilute more than the headline, and the levers that decide what you still own at Series A.

A CIM example you can actually read: the 9-section confidential information memorandum template we use on every sell-side mandate, an annotated illustrative excerpt for a fictional B2B SaaS company, and the 5 mistakes that make buyers close the PDF.